Group of Lawrence students leaving Friday for trip to Costa Rica; trip not affiliated with Lawrence school district

A dozen students from Southwest and West Junior High Schools in Lawrence are preparing to leave early Friday morning for a trip to Costa Rica.

The trip was organized through EF Educational Tours, the same group that led Justin Johnston’s trip to Costa Rica. Johnston, a McLouth High School student, was shot and killed there Thursday.

Two teachers from Southwest are serving as chaperones for the trip, said Julie Boyle, a district spokeswoman: Lisa Ball and Dani Lotton Barker.

“They are in the process of communicating with their participants about the tragic news today,” Boyle said, noting that the Lawrence group “is reviewing safety precautions and security measures associated with its travel plans.”

The trip is not organized through the Lawrence school district and is not considered a school trip, Boyle said. Participants are financing their own travel.

Comments

The decision is: Is your child expendable? Plain and simple. You decide.
And FYI, my comment runs far, far deeper than the recent events.What makes you think a teacher is an expert on where they are going, and has the brains to seriously keep in mind your child's welfare? Too often, they, like other humans, prefer to 'assume' children and circumstances will flow along with the pretty picture and plans they've made....ignoring facts of danger, that come from everywhere, including the children's chosen behavior at the moment.

Teachers, I've found..like most people, prefer to think 'nothing is wrong, oh, that can't be!', and go along blindly ignoring potential hazards, warnings, previous events. Humans prefer to believe nothing bad happens in their world, or along the path they want to embark on.

We are SO sheltered from danger, in our sweet little midwest lives...we've forgotten the very basics of wariness. Protecting our young, our families.

Multidisciplinary (anonymous) says… "What makes you think a teacher is an expert on where they are going, and has the brains to seriously keep in mind your child's welfare?"

Or managing a large group of teenagers outside of a classroom 24 hours a day, 7 days a week with no breaks. Hopefully these aren't the "cool teachers" who are more interested in being the friend as opposed to the adult who needs to impose discipline and enforce the rules.

Word of advice for the parents, checkout the Tweets, Myspace, and LinkedIn pages of the chaperones. Word of advice for the chaperones, clean up your social media accounts and then check the cost to purchase personal liability coverage with your insurance agent.

So you let your kids run around in the middle of the night in the US? Thousands of students travel to foreign countries every year, and most of them follow the rules. If he had been running around McClouth at 4:00 in the morning and probably riding with some buddies who were drinking, and died in a car accident, would you say no children should live in Jefferson County?

And let me remind you of the many tragic deaths that have occurred in Jefferson County in the last 15 years. Probably a higher rate than many counties of that size. In fact, Jefferson county has a reputation of having a lot of parents who condone underage drinking and "pushing the envelope". I remember the pictures of that kid's room who died a few years back. It was full of pot bongs, beer cans and guns. Boys will be boys, I guess. Then there are the boys who think it's ok to rape and murder young girls. Should I judge all of Jefferson county by these incidents? Don't throw rocks at foreign countries until you have examined your own.

Multi: "The decision is: Is your child expendable? Plain and simple. You decide."

So if I as a parent allow my child to travel to Costa Rica, one of the safest and most democratic countries in the Americas, I am treating my child as expendable? Really?

Nationalism is not a way to achieve world peace or the bettering of mankind. Learning firsthand about other countries and cultures is the best way for people to learn that "American Exceptionalism" really isn't so exceptional.

I would start that discussion by suggesting just three topics to talk about in a discussion about Costa Rica: 1) crime rates 2) gun deaths, 3) voting behaviors